Russell Tovey Joins Gay-Themed HBO Dramedy 'Looking' (Exclusive)

This marks the first major U.S. role for the actor, who broke out playing the werewolf on BBC's "Being Human."

Russell Tovey is joining the cast of Looking, HBO's upcoming half-hour dramedy about the lives of a group of gay men living in San Francisco, The Hollywood Reporter has learned.

Tovey, best known as werewolf George Sands on the hit BBC supernatural drama Being Human
-- which later inspired a U.S. version on Syfy --has been booked to play the recurring role of Kevin, an accomplished video game wunderkind who has achieved financial and critical success at a young age. Kevin, who is gay, works closely with Patrick, the show's lead, played by Jonathan Groff.

The deal marks the first major U.S. role for 31-year-old Tovey, who is openly gay. The British actor has previously said that he veers away from playing gay roles, telling the Independent, "Every character I play is straight, which is unique, my agent says, because it’s not really been done before that someone who is completely out is able to play straight roles. So for me to play gay it has to be something special, because it might actually be more of a risk. So I’m waiting for that role -- I want it to be something that moves things forward."

The series, created by Michael Lannan, centers on three gay friends, played by Groff, Frankie J. Alvarez and Murray Bartlett, as they hunt for love and good times, with all manner of modern conveniences at their disposal. Also in the cast is Scott Bakula, who plays Lynn, a wealthy and popular figure in the San Francisco gay community.

The pilot episode, penned by co-executive producer Lannan, was directed by Weekend's Andrew Haigh, who serves as executive producer along with Sarah Condon. The eight-episode series is set to begin shooting in San Francisco in the coming weeks.